Earlier than he assumed the highest roles at NSA and Cybercom, he served for 2 years as Deputy Commander of US Cyber Command. Throughout that point, he ran Cyber Command’s half of the “Russia Small Group,” a joint effort with the NSA to defend the 2018 midterm elections from Russian interference. Anne Neuberger, who later served within the Biden administration as a deputy nationwide security adviser for cyber and rising applied sciences, ran the NSA’s half of that group.
Democratic lawmakers rapidly condemned Haugh’s firing. Sen. Mark R. Warner of Virginia, the rating Democrat on the Senate Choose Committee on Intelligence, mentioned, “At a time when america is going through unprecedented cyberthreats, because the Salt Storm cyberattack from China has so clearly underscored, how does firing him make People any safer?”
Rating Member of the Home Intelligence Committee Jim Himes mentioned, “I’m deeply disturbed by the choice to take away Normal Haugh as Director of the Nationwide Safety Company. I’ve identified Normal Haugh to be an sincere and forthright chief who adopted the regulation and put nationwide security first — I concern that these are exactly the qualities that might result in his firing on this Administration. The Intelligence Neighborhood and the American individuals want a right away rationalization for this resolution, which makes all of us much less secure.”